Hermetic closure for receptacles.



'PATENTBD JAN. 8.1907

vv. A. LORENZ. HBRMBTIC GLOSURE FOR REGBPTAGLBsf APPLIGATIONFILEDAPR.11.1904.

Affi

A 1v1/Medio?" WILLLLm/ ./llmwwz .against a liet seat, ywhich is at right angles diii'icultg.T of maintaining" the cap in a level pothe subsequent handling or transportation of WILLAlti A.. LORENZ, Oli` HAR'FORD, UGNNCTIUUT.

life. 341,02?

Specification ol. Letters Patent.

Paterted Jan. 8, 3.907,

Application tiled April ll, i90/l1, heilal No. 202.563.

To rzv// wif/om, if '.utr/f/ er1/Merit: I Be it known that l, WiLLiAiiA. LORENZ, a citizen oiC the United States, and a resident oi Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain i new and useful Improvements in Herinetio Closures for Receptacles, of which the Jfollowingr is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to closures for here nietically-sealed jars and other receptacles.

Figures l and 2 are fragmentary side Views of a jar with its gasket and ca Fig. l showing` the parts in their exhausting or yair-expolling,Y position, and Fig. 2 showing the cap pushed downto its sealed position. 3 is a side vieu' of a sealed jar. Fig. el is fragnient-ary side View of a sealed jar, showing a inodiiied forni of the closure. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the eilect ol tilting.r action by the cap,

in the hermetic scaling oi Y*ia-rs and other re- 'ceptach-is hy means of gasket and eonipress'u ing cap therefor the type oi closure coni nioiily employed is that which is liiiown as a wedging closure, in which the sealing pressure is applied to the gasket at an angle with the direction in which the cap nieves 'while effecting the seal as con pared with a closure which the gasket compressed directlgT with the' direction of movement of the cap. This Wedging action is 'usually obtained by providingthe receptacle or the esp, or both, with a tapering or flaring seatior the gasket- The sintieriority oi' this type of closure is due largely te the fact that the actual and etfeetive sealing pressure upon thc gasket ohtained oy those taperingI or flaring surfaces is greater than the direct or initial pressure upon the cap, this eilective pressure increasing the taper or angle of the pressingsun faces approaches a parallel relation to the direction of movement of the cap. @n the other hand, the niore nearly the pressingsurilaces approach a parallel relation 'to the direction oi movement of the engi the greater the sition upon the gasket, not only during the exhausting and sealing operation, hut also in the sealed packages. lhe incre iiearljtv pan allel the two opposite sides oi the compress ing taper or angle are w ith each other the more readily the cap and gas-liet may he displaced relative to each other and to the jar, so thatthe cap i'vill tip`dowii on one side and up the other whenever there is any unevenness of pressure exerted upon it7 suchl as is liable to occur during the handling and pilingn up, 'which takes-place between the iilling and the sealing of the jar and its delivery vto its ultimate purchaser. This-tipping of the cap is objectionable, not only because itl .detracts from the appearance el' the package, hut also for the more important reason that the two sealing-seats of the cap and gasket are thereby inovedout of their intended conformity with each other and with the gasket. ln the iodern development ol this. art the gasket and its sealing-seats upon the receptacle and the cap are carefully designed, arranged, and proportioned to cooperate in a particular and. exact relation and conformity, any departure from which endaiigers the integrity or permanence of the seal'.

ln the Wedging closures hitherto comni'only employed the tapering compressing surfaces are usually formed at a consider7n able angle to the direction of the sealing movement ol' the capjfthis angle being a sortof compromise intended to secure the grcatf est amount of eil'eetive sealing pressure eonsistent with affording a reasonably stableangle for supporting the cap in level position; but this eoinproinise angle precludes the more effective pressure which might lie obtained by making the taper or anglecf the compressing-surfaces more nearly perallel with the direction or" increment of lthe cap. To compensatey in a measure 'for this sacrilice of the more eiieetive sealing angle, seine of these closures have been hitherto designed and arranged so as to concentrate thesealing pressure upon a single comparatively narrow zone of the gasket instead of distributing the pressure over a 'relatively greater area, and thereby lessening the pressure per unit of area., y

in the vpreseid; invention. the sealing pressure .is divided between two different zones and upon what arepraetieally t-Wo different sealing-seats, each of which is tapered at the inost adrantafbous angie for the eiiieienoy ot the Wenig-ing pressure Without regard toA the functionv of. leveling the cap, the latter function being attended to hy separating the two sealing Zones or seats, so as to ait'ord an extended bese oi support 'for the cap. Moreover, the effective sealing pressure 'thus gained by the reletix/eliT slight taper of the sealingseats' eoini'ien wholly or in part 'for the-apparent sacri lee sealing pressure due to dividing it between the two sealingseats. For exinnple, by employing e taper which is one-halt the ingle vol1 the former taper the effective pressure approximately doubled, thus einihlinglit to he divided l etween its two seelinff-seuts Without. reni loss, the el'l'eotive pres ure on @zich seat. being equal to the pressure which in the other in- Stzmoo wus exerted upon e single sont.

Thus the present invention tney he proporly denominated e double closure in tivo senses: first7 in the sense that the effective sealing pressure nniy he doubledy and, secondly, in the respect that two precticnll)v independent sealed joints nre ioi'nied. lt is obvious that such n double closure7 in which the gasket is compressed on :iniY two eircunn ferentinl zones, instead of one, and with the saine pressure on. @zich zone es used hereto! fore on n. single zone, would he very niueli more reliable then the ordiniirv single closure, it would reduire the 'failure ot' two `oints instead ol` it single joint to muse leakage.

The stability of position of the cup flue to the separation oi" the two sealing Zones or seats is also .increesed by ineking'the lower sealing-seat oli greater dinineter than the upper seat and ley providing what is herein. designated a leveling-seat `for the gasket and cap intermediate the two sealing zones. That leveling-seat disposed et n greater angle thintthe sling-stints und cooperates with some portion of the gasket to prevent undue tipping olA the mp7 particularly when 'the latter is .in its settled position.

The jar lo in Figs. l and 2 has n. .neck 17, which tapers slighti.Y ouv/verd 'toward the bottoni of the jin und which lorins the upperlinost 0lz the'two sealing Zones. Below it .is another tepernw portion. 1S, which forms a receiving-seat uponirhich the gasket is yadjacent. neck oll the supported ngninst the downward pressure ol theoep. The portion lll oli the jer terininates in a rounded. or clnnnlered shoulder or zone i9, which forms the second sealing zone of the jor. The oep "22 is provided in its upper portion with n shoulder 23 and a, llering portion 24, joined hy. en intermediate portion 25. The gasket 27.is preferably oll 'a' rhoinbic or rhoinhoidal cross-section, though it may he of any suite-ble shape. The gasket is supported on the receiving seat 18 with one thin. edge '28 extending upwerd'along the upper sealing zone l?, while its other thin edge 2) exteinls downwardly over and beyond thelower shoulder 19. ln this position. the cti-p rests on the gasket 'so 'as tolle-ve en annuler spore hetween the intermediate portion 25 of the oep .find the As the' oep 22 .l/l.- moves dovmwsrd under the `pressure. ol the Sealing operation the shoulder 25% eoinpressesthe upper part of the .{iislzet against the upper tapering neck l? ol the pir, `while serez? the lla-ring portion 24 ol the rep compresses the lower part of the gasket against the shoulder 19 of the jur. As the angles ol' the two seuling-suriiices 17 and il ol' the jar und cap, respectively, diverge only slightljv troni the vertical line ol the scaling inovenient on the cup. the gasket is pinched along the two smilingr zones o and li, Fig. 2, with a. ver)v high degree ot pressure. .lhe annular space between the interinediz'ite portion 25 oi the cup and the jini-neck zulinits the central portion of' the gasket 27, lfigr. 2, so that the Goinpression ot' the gasket rit that portion is less than et the sealed joints. The bodyof the gasket thus supports the rep liroin being displaced,y on account of the freeler angle of the surl'nces le; end 25. and heraus@ the gaisH kei is less compressed et its center the Cep cnn settle downward readily agonist the uns het :it the zones oand b es the tont'inued pressure on the cap nniv cause it to do so.

On account ol the degree ot' separation between the tivo scaling zones any tipping of' the esp will cause en additional compression ot the gasket st one or more points on the sealing Zone several times greater than the saine amount. ol" tipping would conse if there were hut one zone. ln the lutter cese the exis oi the tipping movement would locate itself in the pleno of the sealing zone, since that location. would cause the leest amount of movement in the oep against the gasket und would therefore meet with the least ernennt of resistance: hut in. the cese of two zones the exis would locate itself somewhere between thosel two zones, since the resist ence on any given zone inereeses the farther the axis of the tipping movement is l'roni the zone. This non he clearly seen by reference to the diegreni, Fig. 5, in which 44 and 45 represent the planes ot the two sealing zones, 48 und 49 the tapering sezilingsiirl`aces, and t6 the exis of the tippingr movement. Il the cap tips downward on the left, that part ot' it which is compressing the gasket hardest on that side must :nove substantially in the line of the are at? and innst therefore nieve inward against the lgasket in the line of the greatest resistance znuoh fester than il the exis of tipping inoveinent were in the plane of the sealing zone 49.

In Fig. 4 is shown a closure in which the jar 34 has. two tapering surfaces 35 and 36 end the cap 3S two compressing-shoulders 39 and 40 for pinching the gasket 42.

The forni of gasket is not en essential few ture ol" the present invention, since it may he varied in Ways 'which will he obvious to.I those ffnnilior with this art. Instead of e. single .relatively wide gasket two or more gaskets may he employed, using a seperate gasket for each of the sealing Zones, either with or Wit-.hout an interniedite leveling-gasket. Thus in various ways, which will apparent to those familier with this art, the

lOO

TIO

invention herein shown maybe modiied and extended.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination with a receptacle, voi" a closure therefor, comprisigxgA gasket material, and a cap provided with two sealingfzones for wedging the gasket material against two different zones of the rece tacle, to estabf lish two separated circles o contact, having a greater lressure than at the otherportions ofthe as ret.

2. T e combination with a receptacle, of a hermetic closure therefor com rising gasket material, and a caphavin a p urality of annular zones, each incline at an angle with the direction of the sealing movement ci the cap for forming aV plurality of wedging-closure joints upon the receptacle.`

-the gasketnaterial at an angle against each of the said sealing zones of the receptacle,

to divide the sealing pressure, and establish it/at two separated circles ci' contact.

5. The combination oia receptacle'provided with two separated tapering sealing zones of diilerent diameters, compressible gasket material therefor, and acap provided with means for compressing 'the gasket material at an angle against each of the sealing zones of the receptacle to form two wedgingclosure jolnts; 7

6. The combination with a gasket, of a receptacle havingtwosealing zones, a flaring cap having two sealing zones for wedging the gasket against the two sealing zones of the receptac e, leaving an intermediate annular space substantially filled by the asket between the two sealed joints, to ivide the pressure and'establish it at two separated circles of hardest contact.

7. The combination with4 a gasket, of a receptacle having two sealing zones, an intermediate receiving-'seat for the gasket, and a flaring cap having two sealing zones for Wedgin the gasket against the two sealing zones ol the receptacle, to divide the vsealin pressure and establish it at two separated circles of hardest contact. i f

8. The combination with a gasket, of a receptacle having two separate sealing zones,l

intermediate receiving-seat for the gasket, a flaring cap having two sealing zones, and an intermediate portion between the two zones divergin from the intermediateseat of `the receptac e, whereby the gasket is compressed at the two sealing zones with greater pressure than at the intermediate portion of the gasket.

9.` The 'combination of a receptacle provided with a rounded shoulder and with a taperi portion, forming two circumferene tial sea ing zones, asket material therefor, and a cap provide with a taperin portion ,and with a rounded shoulder for we ving the gasket against the aforesaid sealing zones of the receptacle, to establish increased ressure at two separated circular joints o the' closure.

' 10. The combination ot a receptacle provided with a tapering circumferential zone, and a circumferential shoulder below the said zone, gasket material therefor, and a cap provided with a circumferential shoulder, and with a tapering circumferential zone for compressing the asket material against the tapering zone, an the shoulder, respectively, of the receptacle, to forni two separated sealing-joints, each having a higher degree of pressure than the remaining portions of the 'gasket material. v

Iiitestimony whereof l. have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM A. LORENZ. itnesses:

H.v MALLNER, JASJW. GREEN. 

